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Groves 'gutted' after title defence gets cancelled

ESPN staff
October 28, 2010
George Groves has won all ten of his professional fights with eight coming inside the distance © Getty Images
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George Groves' first Commonwealth title defence will have to wait after opponent James Odebe Toney did not pass his pre-fight medical on Thursday.

'The Saint' was set to meet super-middleweight challenger Toney at London's York Hall on Saturday but the bout has been called off because Toney has failed to shake off a cataract problem.

Hayemaker Promotions attempted to find a last-minute replacement but they could not persuade Prizefighter winner Patrick Mendy to step into the ring at such short notice - leaving them with no choice but to cancel the show.

"I'm gutted," Groves told Sky Sports. "This was going to be a great show, this wasn't a deadpan night, there were some good fights on the undercard and I was really looking forward to it.

"We had put a lot of mileage into this, a lot of hard work and effort. I've been training hard for 10 weeks and this night had been a long time coming. It was sold out and was going to be fantastic. We looked around, tried to get someone in, but it wasn't to be."

However, all is not lost for Groves after the unbeaten 22-year-old was given a slot on the undercard of stablemate David Haye's heavyweight showdown with Audley Harrison on November 13 at the Manchester MEN Arena - although the search for an opponent continues.

"We'll now look to the 13th, but I am not sure it will be a title defence now," he said. "I think it's going to be against a top-ranked European."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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